9 Farmers Commit Suicide Daily In Drought-Hit Maharashtra

As many as 3,228 farmers committed suicide in Maharashtra in 2015, the highest since 2001, according to data tabled in the Rajya Sabha on March 4, 2016–that is almost nine farmers every day. The number of suicides almost equal the number of people killed (3,477) by the Taliban, a global terror organisation based in Afghanistan, in 2014, IndiaSpend had reported earlier. Vidarbha and Marathwada, with 5.7 million farmers, accounted for 83% of all farmer suicides in Maharashtra in 2015. Maharashtra is divided into five geographical regions, comprising six administrative divisions – Konkan, Pune, Nashik, Marathwada (Aurangabad) and Vidarbha (Amravati and Nagpur). The Vidarbha region reported the most farmer suicides, 1,541, in 2015. Nagpur (362) and Amravati (1,179) witnessed the maximum farmer suicides in the Vidarbha region. Vidarbha was followed by Aurangabad (1,130) that forms the Marathwada region. As many as 89 farmers ended their lives in Marathwada in January this year. The Farmers Distress Management Task Force, appointed by the state government, blamed the deaths on the “collective failure of government officials”. Alarming numbers in 2014 As many as 5,650 Indian farmers committed suicide in 2014, or 15 farmers a day, according to data from the National Crime Records Bureau. The top five major causes of farmer suicides in 2014 were bankruptcy or indebtedness (1,163), family problems (1135), farming-related issues (969) – such as failure of crops, distress owing to natural calamities, inability to sell produce, illness (745) and drug abuse and alcohol addiction (250). Bankruptcy or indebtedness was also a major cause for farmer suicides (857) in Maharashtra in 2014. Bankruptcy or indebtedness from crop loans accounted for 765 deaths, followed by non-agricultural loans (76) and equipment loans (16). The estimated average amount of outstanding loan per agricultural household in Maharashtra was Rs 54,700, above the national average of Rs 47,000, based on the Situation Assessment Survey of Agricultural Households during January-December 2013 by the National Sample Survey Organisation of the Ministry of Statistics. Bankruptcy was followed by family problems (671), farming-related issues (352), illness (241) and drug abuse/alcohol addiction (173) among the top five causes for farmer suicides in Maharashtra. Five states Of the 5,650 farmers who committed suicide in 2014, 66% (3,712) were between 30 and 60 years of age, while 23% (1,300) were 18 to 30 years old. Maharashtra reported the most (2,568) farmer suicides, in 2014, followed by Telangana (898), Madhya Pradesh (826), Chhattisgarh (443) and Karnataka (321). These top five states account for 89% of all farmer suicides in the country in 2014. With a hard year ahead, those figures are unlikely to improve. Worst water crisis India is facing the worst water crisis in a decade with 91 major reservoirs having no more than 29% water, IndiaSpend reported recently. Jayakwadi dam in Aurangabad district in Marathwada, which is witnessing the worst drought in a century, has only 1% water left of its 2.17 billion cubic metre capacity, IndiaSpend reported in January. As many as 246 districts in ten states across the country have already been declared drought-affected in 2015-16, according to this Lok Sabha reply on March 10. Of these, 21 districts in Maharashtra, or 15,747 villages, are drought-affected. The Maharashtra government recently declared 11,962 villages in Vidarbha as drought-affected, according to this Mintreport. In all, 27,723 villages of 43,000 Maharashtra villages in the state are drought-hit. “The drought in Vidarbha is more of an agriculture drought and not hydrological. In Marathwada, it is both agriculture and hydrological,” Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said. “The government has allocated Rs 1,000 crore for immediate relief measures in these villages and more funds will be provided after assessment of losses.”Article originally posted at Indiaspend.org which is a data-driven, public-interest journalism non-profit.

ISRO To Adopt Drought-Hit Karnataka Village To Prevent Farmer Suicides

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An Army Colonel Is Changing Lives Of Thousand Of People From North-East Using White Bullets

Retiring after spending 32 years in the Indian Army, Col Chris Rego is helping change the destinies of hundreds of children in conflict-affected North East India through his “White Bullets” initiative. With this initiative, he hopes to bring peace and progress to communities across North East India.

Luminouswanted to bring out the Colonel’s story to the world to inspire and motivate others as it believes that education is a strong tool to empower women. It is supporting Col Rego’s cause through an initiative called #Luminaries – the brave people who stand up for causes like girl child education and make a difference in the society.

Col Rego’s journey started over a decade ago in Manipur when a tribal woman knocked on his door pleading for support for her daughter’s education. Touched by the woman’s story, Col Rego and his wife delved into their savings and arranged for the money for the girl’s education. Two years down the line, the woman returned, this time with a small pumpkin and a shawl that she had knitted, and all the money she had borrowed. Moved and realizing that their money could make lives rather than earn paltry interest, Col and Mrs. Rego embarked on a journey to arrange for sponsorship of many more underprivileged children.

Retiring from the Army, Col Rego took over as CEO of Sunbird Trust, a not-for-profit organization which he founded in 2014. The Trust now sponsor over 1,000 children in 21 locations acrossNorth East India. The centre of Sunbird Trust’s activities is at beautiful Ijeirong, Manipur.

Recognizing Col Chris’s immense work, Luminousacknowledged him as their first Luminary. Through this, they hope to bring more power to his elbow in the notable work he is doing. The Luminousteam travelled to remote Ijeirong village and installed solar products. These solar products will help in providing power to the entire campus 24/7 for the very first time.

The Logical Indian salutes Col Christopher Rego for his untiring efforts and leadership. His efforts are already having a cascading effect on people from across India joining the “White Bullets” endeavour. Quite amazingly, education, in itself so empowering, is merely a means to PEACE. We hope the path illuminated by #Luminary Col Rego and his Sunbird Trust team acts as a beacon for others to follow.

If you too have stories of change, share them with us. And if you want to connect with Colonel Rego, click here.